Train Writing

Some thoughts I jotted down on a trip last weekend that I'm just getting typed up!
Comfortably seated in the roomy chairs of an Amtrak train, I watch my surroundings whip past me in a blur. I actually prefer taking a train to my destination rather than fly. Crazy, I know. Why exchange a one-hour flight for eight hours of noisy train? But the thing is, an eight hour trip isn't long when you feel like you're moving. There's a reason why Amtrak implemented its writer's residency program- it's a unique avenue to find inspiration.

The high, grey walls of the cityscape fades into the distance and the forests of upstate New York start to appear around the edges of my vision. This is when I know that we've truly left New York City. Gone is the graffitied concrete and in its place is an expanse of water bordered by spindly willow trees across the river.

I appreciate these scenic train rides and the opportunity to collect my thoughts in environments that take me out of my comfort zone. But they, too, rush past me, almost too quick to hold onto. They're fleeting, these moments of clarity.

We slow down as we cross over a bridge that spans a beautiful view of the the Hudson River. The surface glistens under the afternoon sunlight. All is still, and I wonder if the animals know that spring is supposed to be have sprung. As we make our way north, the landscape becomes a frigid tundra of ice and snow. I decide that they do not. It still looks and feels like winter, after all.